20 years later, am back to bass playing !?...& LOVE it

[nuno1959]

hi everyone

i'm new here so i thought i'd introduce myself & after that, nag you w/ a couple questions if that's OK..

i'm from Portugal, 53 years old & my name is Nuno
i'm an artist/designer/silversmith, an avid motorcyclist & can't imagine life without music !!

fortunately am going through some sort of "mid-life crisis" which, among other VERY good things, has brought me back to off-road motorcycling every chance i get AND play the bass after stopping it 20 years ago !..

30 years ago i used to play in a small time but fun band which made up through enthusiasm/contagious live energy what we lacked in musical ability ( these 2 got more airplay so, if curious check us here : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8E4iPgfmQI & http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYQJZReY1pM & have a laugh..) & did so w/ a US made 1978 Fender Precision ( nice bass, sound, weighed a TON..) through a Seymour Duncan 4000 Bass amp + 2 X 15'' cab
always had this frustration of knowing i'd never play as "nice" as my favourite bass players, the list being SOO big i'll spare you but trust me when i say all the usual suspects are a part of it...Pastorius, S.Clarke, Hellborg, S.Thunes to name but a few

so, when the band split, amicably enough to avoid jail time, if only just !...LOL... & since there were none of the toys available today to make bass playing alone at home bearable, i sold my bass to a friend & gave him my amp & cab since i thought the rig was too nice to just park it & let it die under a ton of dust, someone might as well enjoy it, you know ?...that was 20 years ago

recently when out on the hills behind my house on my motorcycle, i stumbled on this group of riders, we got talking & guess what ? yup, some get together a couple of times a week to play & i was invited to drop by...

next thing i know, bitten by the bug again, i got a surprisingly nice Cort Action4 just to give it a go...

dusted off my old Peavey Combo300, plugged it in & BOOOM !! back into full "terrorise the neighbours" mode !!...LOL...
luckily since i work at home & they all go away for the day, i can make all the noise i want until at least 6.30PM - YES !!

thanks to this new found joy of playing, YouTube bass lessons, my Mac/GarageBand & my Zoom B3 looping feature, i've got my truly half assed chops back, actually bettered them SLIGHTLY through sheer stubbornness & am having a ball...

problem is, having tried a friend's 5 string ESP LTD i was left with this "i want a 5 string" urge - i LOVED that fat, thunderous B string !! oh man, does this constant need for new toys ever go away ? i sure hope NOT !

not having a big budget & based on how REALLY nice my bargain basement Cort feels AND plays, i thought i'd go for an equally unassuming instrument, of best quality construction possible even if at a later date i would upgrade it's electronics ?

after browsing around for a while i came up with these models :

a Peavey Grind NTB 5 for 245€
a Peavey Millenium AC BXP for 340€
a Peavey Cirrus 5 BXP QuiltTop TigerEye or Bubinga for 450€ ( a bit pushing it $$ but doable if REALLY better..)
a Cort Arona 5 OPBB for 460€ ( same as above..)

all brand new & browsing the used market didn't bring anything worthwhile up, except if i had more $$ available

this list seems to indicate a preference for either Peavey or Cort, instead it reflects the fact that :

1 - music stores here usually operate along the ''order it, pay for it &..be stuck with it if you don't like it" concept..
the limited stock they carry revolves around Yamaha's & Ibanez's cheaper models which after trying, didn't really tickle my fancy ( no offence meant but words such as brash sounding, noisy & flimsy come to mind..)
2 - how incredibly NICE & decent my Cort sounds/feels - specially considering it was almost free..
3 - the fact that i remember playing a Peavy Dyna bass YEARS ago which compared VERY nicely to my Fender & how Peavey basses consistently get complimented build quality wise
4 - Cort & Peavey DO have a decent after sales service here & last but NOT least - yes, my budget sucks - BIG TIME !! :-b

as nice as the cool, very good looking exotic woods are, ultimately i care more for how the instrument feels in one's hands & then how it sounds even if it looks like a plank - i've KNOW that if an instrument doesn't feel nice, one doesn't get as enticed to pick it up, it's sound being always possible to mould/polish to some extent via the EQ or effects, etc..

oh boy, choices choices - any suggestions ? any help WILL be VERY appreciated

thanks to all for your patience, sorry for such a long post, greetings &....happy thumping ? ;-)

Nuno

[macrocheesium]

Did you try out an Ibanez BTB or just the smaller SR series? I rarely see the BTB but it's a beast and one of the most solidly built basses I've ever played. The Schecters around that price point are good too. I plan on getting a Stiletto Studio 5 soon myself.

[pacojas]

great to hear! i, too, am back after 15yrs off. i am gigging 3-5 times per month and loving it!

[nuno1959]

Hi macrocheesium

just the SR series but i must admit i drooled over some pics of the BTB ! problem is i couldn't find one second-hand ( meaning within my price range..) & new it just costs more than i can afford right now
even listened to a few people playing them on YouTube - sounded lovely !!

regarding the Shecters, as far as i know, no one seems to carry them in Portugal ! but i will look them up, thanks !

hi Pacojas

it IS fun, isn't it ? ;-) damn, i had forgotten how much...

[Sonicfrog]

Nuno.... God! You and I are twins separated at birth or something!... At least as far as bass choices goes!

I just posted this on the "pictures of you playing your bass" thread. Note the two basses I feature.... My black Peavey DynaBass 5'er, and my butterscotch 4 string Cort Action!

I also have a Cort fretless. I've become a big fan of that brand. They're so playable... And so light! I loved my Yamaha RB, but it was just too damned heavy. My back would hurt after gigs. The Peavey is heavy too, but I only use it on a couple of songs.

PS. Welcome back the low end. Bass playing is like trying to quit the mafia... You think you're out, and then they pull you right back in!

[Volpe25]

If you're looking for a large selection of basses then check out Thomann. Just put it into google, its got a really really good stock, loads of choices of 5 and 6 string basses, strings, effects, etc. Nearly everything comes with a 3 year warranty, 30 day returns, and postage is quite cheap, to portugal its 20 euro for every order under 200 euro and anything over that is free I know a few people who've ordered stuff from there and they're apparently really helpful with returns and warranties

[Chunk-O-Funk]

Also coming from a bassist in hiatus. This website has kept me going, good place for G.A.S (gear acquisition syndrome) and learning.

I say narrow down your list (sounds like you have) and go to music shops and try as many basses you can.

[nuno1959]

hi sonicfrog

my friend trust me when i tell you that if some years ago someone would tell me i WOULD fall in love with a really, really cheap bass, i would've laughed & say impossible !! fact is in those days basses costing twice as much were twice a bad if not more :

30 years ago when i bought my second hand Fender, i paid 400€ ( US$500 ?..) for it & it would sweep the floor with ANY bass costing up to 50% more in feel, finish, sound, you name it

this Cort ? all obvious limitations aside, i really believe it would give it a run for the money...

Hi Volpe

i have & that's actually where i bought both my ESP guitar ( yes, 6 string guitar - guilty as charged but it was the voices who made me do it !!..) & my cheap & VERY merry Kustom 100W head & 412 cab. excellent service, MOST DEFINITELY to recommend to all

that's where i saw both the Cort Arona5 & one of the Peavey Cirrus ;-) & 3 years warranty ? man.....that just nails it for me !

[nuno1959]

hi Chunk-O-Funk

yes....G.A.S.....oh boy, try balancing that with a non-existant budget !!...LOL...

i have tried to narrow it down, reason there are 3 Peavey models is because i keep reading THIS is nice about this one & then THAT is nice about the other, etc...& being so incredibly cheap for what seems like a LOT OF BASS i thought i might as well include them & see what others think

problem with music shops here is that except for the REALLY cheap & nasty stuff, they don't seem to want to invest in any stock so, trying something nice is more difficult than it should

if i want to try a few basses, i must go to Lisbon ( the capital, 200 miles away from where i live..) to actually find A COUPLE of decent places & even then there are no guarantees, it's nuts

that's why these days i tend to turn to the web & advice on forums & save the time, money & effort of the trip, you know ?

cheers

[Chunk-O-Funk]

Okay, I understand. More than likely your next bass will be purchased online.

My advise is still try different basses if you can. Check out return policies at the places you will buy from and return the bass if you want to try something else. You may prefer a certain sound, finger spacing, neck shape or whatever. If that doesn't work for you keep on doing what you're doing. Stick around and learn about your next bass.

Just keep in mind trying basses online is a more expensive way to do things. You will lose money in shipping and restocking fees.


GAS, ugh.

[nuno1959]

i've even thought about getting one of these cheap-a** RyanAir flights to the UK from Faro ( like 70 or 80€ return..) & spend there a couple of days driving everyone nuts in Denmark Street but....it would only be worth it if i was out shopping for a costlier instrument

bucket list nº1 item : DEFINITELY rob a bank, sometime SOON !....LOL....

as for G.A.S yes, yes...we complain BUT deep down we love it !!!!! ;-)

[macrocheesium]

Originally Posted by Chunk-O-Funk

Just keep in mind trying basses online is a more expensive way to do things. You will lose money in shipping and restocking fees.

I don't know where you get that idea. Lots of online stores have free shipping for expensive items, and you can usually find them at or below shelf prices. Got my F-5E for $70 less than the normal price, shipping included!

[Chunk-O-Funk]

Originally Posted by macrocheesium

I don't know where you get that idea. Lots of online stores have free shipping for expensive items, and you can usually find them at or below shelf prices. Got my F-5E for $70 less than the normal price, shipping included!

True, but nuno1959 mentioned he was from Portugal. My assuming there may be international shipping charges. I was thinking of returning a bass and the cost of doing so, IE shipping charges. Shipping/returning just one bass for trial purposes would take a bite out of the $70.00 you saved.

I see your point though. I should have put may be more expensive and could lose money.

Point was it all depends on who nuno1959 buys from to get these discounts. Looking up their return policy is a good idea from my perspective.

[nuno1959]

the guys i would actually buy it online have fair, reasonable return policies BUT....returning it is at one's expense unless there was some flaw/defect on the item of course...

[charliebrown]

Last played bass in a band quite a long time ago. Had a '62 reissue jazz bass. Sold my entire rig and concentrated on day job and family. All kids are grown now. Picked up a jazz bass copy that was used, played nice. Got it home, disassembled, set up, new strings. Plays amazingly well with very low action. Currently running through an Ashdown EB 180 head and 2x12 cabinet. Very happy all around. Mostly doing recording and using direct out. Remains to be seen if I'll gig at all. Busy enough with it at home on my projects. Fun eh? Tons!